Infusion pumps and sensing devices such as blood pressure monitors and oxymeters are in widespread use in the medical field. Some infusion pumps currently in use also permit the infusion of several medications at different rates through a common cannula from a single unit with multiple pumps.
In the environment of intensive care units, cardiac care units, operating rooms or trauma centers, it is often necessary to infuse into the patient one to eight different drugs simultaneously. In addition, some of the drugs used in these environments are not directly compatible with each other and therefore need to be infused into the patient at different points of the body. Also, it is frequently necessary to observe and recall the condition of the patient at certain intervals or to adjust the medication in accordance with the patient's reaction to it. In order to avoid errors due to the proliferation of individual pieces of equipment around a seriously ill patient, it is highly desirable to manage the infusion and monitoring functions from a central point; yet it is often necessary to transport the patient during the intravenous administration of medication under circumstances where it is impractical to transport an entire centrally controlled system together with the patient.